Engine



Oct. 1, 1940.

A. J. MEYER ET AL ENGINE med April 25. 1938 4 Shoots-Sheet 1 Oct-1.19 0- mm m; 2,216,128 E NGINE Filed April 25, 1938 4 Shoots-Shoat 2 ATTb E.

A. J. MEYER ET AL ENGINE Filed April 25, 1938 Oct. 1, 1940.

4 Sheets-Sheet 3 v Oct. 1, 1940. I

A. J. MEYER ET'AL ENGINE I 4 Santa-Sheet 4 Filed April 25, 1938 IN VENTOR.5

Patented a. 1, 1940 Me /MAW ENKHNE ginia Application itpril $25, 1938, b' erial N0. 2%,234.

tlliaims.

This invention relates to engines and more particularly to engines of the sleeve valve type embodying preferably a single sleeve valve of the combined movement type and driven by means of a sleeve driving crank.

in many instances it is found very difficult to assemble a sleeve valve in an engine, particularly in an engine of the radial cylinder type, especially in that type of an assembly in which the sleeve valve is removed outwardly through the crank case opening.

An object of the present invention is to tacilh tate the assembly of a sleeve valve with the englue and to minimize maintenance costs in time and labor by providing a novel and simplified arrangement for quickly assembling a sleeve valve in driving connection with the sleeve valve driving means. More particularly, this is accomplished by simplifying the construction of the sleeve driving means whereby to facilitate the connecting and disconnecting of the sleeve valve with the sleeve drive crank and by providing an arrangement which makes possible the ready removal or assembly of said sleeve valve through the crankcase opening.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a vertical sectional view through an engine cylinder illustrating the present invention,

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view illustrative of the sleeve and driving connections relative to the crankcase but showing the cylinder removed,

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary elevational view partly in section of the sleeve valve and means connecting same with the sleeve drive crank and taken on the-line 3---t of Fig. 2,

Fig. i is a horizontal sectional view taken on the line 4-! of Fig. 3, but showing the sleeve valve shifted relative to the piston,

Fig. 5 is an elevational view of the sleeve after same has been laterally shifted as shown in Fig. 4 and also shifted in a direction substantially normal to the aforesaid shift illustrated in Fig. 4, whereby to clear the sleeve drive crank.

Fig. 6 is a vertical sectional view thereof taken substantially on the line 6-6 of Fig. 5,

Fig. 7 is a bottom plan view taken substantially on the line 'I-i of Fig. 6, and illustrating the notched construction of the ball socket carried by the sleeve valve and showing how the sleeve drive crank will clear the sleeve valve,

Fig. 8 is a sectional view taken substantially at right angles to Fig. 6 and showing in dotted lines the successive positions assumed by the sleeve valve in being removed after being rotated when released from the sleeve drive crank,

Fig. 9 is an enlarged elevational view oil the lower or inner end of the sleeve valve, and shows the notched construction of the sleeve drive ball socket, and

Fig. 10 is an enlarged detailed sectional view thereof taken substantially on the line li it oi Fig. 9.

The engine herein illustrated comprises a w crankcase it having an opening it and which supports the conventional crankshaft it connected by the conventional connecting rod it to a piston it by means of a piston pin it. A cylinder structure it is bolted or otherwise secured m to the crankcase and includes a cylinder head structure ll. Said cylinder structure is prefer ably piloted in the crankcase opening it and is preferably bolted to said crankcase by long bolts it which serve to clamp the cylinder head and cylinder structure to said crankcase, as more particularly described and claimed in the copending application, Serial No. 203,4t8, tiled April 21, 1938, for Engines.

The cylinder structure is ported for intake and exhaust, which ports are controlled preferably by ported sleeve valve means. The present invcn tion is primarily concerned with the means for assembling this sleeve valve means in operative driving connection with the engine, and therefore, this invention is embodied in a sleeve valve engine having a ported single sleeve valve 2% of the combined movement type, which sleeve valve is driven by the sleeve drive crank 2i through the ball and socket connection 22. Preferably, the ball and socket is carried by the sleeve valve and the ball 23 assembled with the socket M is provided with a hole 25 into which the crank 2i is slidably engaged. Normal sleeve valve operation is such as to always retain the sleeve drive crank in engagement with the ball 23, and the present invention teaches a method of assembly and/or removal of the sleeve valve from the crankcase and embodies an improved construction which makes this possible and practical. It will be noted that the socket 24 and the sleeve lug 26 are notched as at 21 to permit the end of the sleeve drive crank to skip by after being disengaged irom the opening or hole 25 in ball 23.

The sleeve valve is moved in such a manner as to bring the notch 21 in line with the crank 2| and thereby disengaged by merely lifting out. the sleeve valve. In order, however, to manipulate the sleeve valve, the cylinder tie down bolts l8 are first released and the cylinder removed till from the crankcase as shown in Fig. 2. The process of removing the sleeve valve is herein described in detail and obviously the assembly will be substantially the reverse of the removing process.

After the removal of the cylinder, the sleeve drive crank is rotated into the position shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the crank 2| being thus positioned as far to one side as possible, the crank arm 28 lying in a horizontal position relative to the vertical cylinder axis. The sleeve and piston are then shifted laterally a distance permitted by the clearance between the connecting rod l3 and the piston bosses 29 (see Fig. 4). This partially Withdraws the sleeve ball 23 off of the crank 2| as clearly shown in Fig. 4. ,The next operation is to shift the sleeve and piston assembly in a direction at right angles to the wrist pin axis to the limit as permitted by the opening II. This last shifting causes the sleeve to rotate about its axis a little further, thus withdrawing the ball socket off the pin 2| (see Fig. 7). The notch 21 is lined up with the corner of the pin 2| and it is now possible to move the sleeve away from driving connection with the sleeve drive pin 2i.

However, the sleeve cannot be lifted straight out of the crankcase opening ll because the diameter of this opening II is not sufllcient to permit the sleeve lug to clear the sides of the opening. The final removal of the sleeve is therefore obtained by rotating the sleeve valve 28, after it is clear of the sleeve drive pin 21 until the axis of the sleeve lug is positioned substantially at right angles to the axes of the wrist pin i5 and engine crankshaft i2. The engine crankshaft is preferably rotated to bring the piston substantially adjacent the top of its stroke. The sleeve and piston can now be rocked about the wrist pin l5 (see Fig. 8) as the sleeve is withdrawn through the opening H, said assembly being rocked sufilciently to permit the sleeve lug to clear the edge of the opening H. It will be noted that the dotted line and dot and dash showings of Fig. 8 clearly illustrate this step.

It will be observed that the various steps in the method above described are readily carried out in sequence and the whole removal of the sleeve valve is substantially one continuous motion. The sleeve valve can also be assembled by reversing the steps in the process above described. The sm'fil notch in the ball socket and sleeve lug removes only a very inappreciable amount of ball bearing surface.

The construction and method described above is illustrative of a preferred embodiment of the invention, but it will be apparent that modifications may be embodied in subsequent designs without departing from the spirit of the invention or from the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

1. In an internal combustion engine of the sleeve valve type including a cylinder, a crankcase, a crankshaft having a crankfa sleeve valve operable in said cylinder, a piston operable in said sleeve valve, means connecting said piston with the crankshaft crank and including a piston pin and connecting rod, sleeve drive mechanism drivingly connected with said crankshaft and including a sleeve drive crank extending parallel to the said piston pin, said crankcase having an opening of a diameter greater than that of said sleeve valve and through which said sleeve valve extends, said cylinder detachably secured to said crankcase, said sleeve valve, piston and connections being constructed and arranged to disengage the sleeve valve from said sleeve drive crank and remove same from said crankcase by laterally shifting said sleeve valve from a position for normal engine operation and rotating same through an angle limited by the throw of the sleeve drive crank, then further rotating the sleeve valve when disengaged from the sleeve drive crank to position said sleeve valve with the axis of the sleeve drive crank connecting boss substantially normal to the piston pin axis, whereby to permit the rocking of the sleeve valve about said piston pin in withdrawing the sleeve valve from the crankcase.

2. In an internal combustion engine of the sleeve valve type including a cylinder, a crankcase, a crankshaft having a crank, a sleeve valve operable in said cylinder, a piston operable in said sleeve valve, means connecting said piston with the crankshaft crank and including a piston pin and connecting rod, sleeve drive mecha nism drivingly connected with said crankshaft and including a sleeve drive crank extending parallel to the said piston pin, said crankcase having an opening of a diameter greater than that of said sleeve valve and through which said sleeve valve extends, said cylinder detachably secured to said crankcase, said sleeve valve, piston and connections being constructed and arranged to disengage the sleeve valvefrom said sleeve drive crank and remove same from said crankcase by laterally shifting said sleeve valve from a position for normal engine operation and rotating same through an angle limited by the throw of the sleeve drive crank, then further rotating the sleeve valve when disengaged from the sleeve drive crank to position said sleeve valve with the axis of the sleeve drive crank socket substantially normal to the piston pin axis, whereby to permit the rocking of the sleeve valve about said piston pin in withdrawing the sleeve valve from the crankcase.

3. In an internal combustion engine of the sleeve valve type including a cylinder, a crankcase, a crankshaft having a crank, a sleeve valve operable in said cylinder, 2. piston operable in said sleeve valve means connecting said piston with the crankshaft crank and including a piston pin and connecting rod, sleeve drive mechanism drivingly connected with said crankshaft and including a sleeve drive crank extending parallel to the said piston pin, said crankcase having an opening of a diameter greater than that of said sleeve valve and through which said sleeve valve extends, said cylinder detachably secured to said crankcase, said sleeve valve piston and connec tions being constructed and arranged so that same can be relatively shifted from a position for normal engine operation after removal of the cylinder from said opening whereby to disengage said sleeve valve from said sleeve drive crank, said sleeve having a ball socket and ball operatively engaged by said sleeve drive pin, said socket having a portion thereof cut away to provide clearance permitting the end of said sleeve drive crank to clear said socket on disconnecting said sleeve valve from said sleeve drive pin.

?Ir'1;- jan internal combustion engine of the sleeve valve type including a cylinder, a c'rankcase, a crankshaft having a crank, a sleeve valve operable in said cylinder, a piston operable in said sleeve valve means connecting said piston with the crankshaft crank and including a piston pin and connecting rod, sleeve drive mechanism drivingly connected with said crankshaft and including a sleeve lug carried by the sleeve and a sleeve drive crank extending parallel to the said piston pin, said crankcase having an opening of a diametergreater than that or said sleeve valve and through which said sleeve valve extends but less than the overall diameter of the sleeve valve and driving lug, said cylinder detachably secured to said crankcase, said sleeve valve piston and connections being constructed and arranged so that same can be relatively shifted from a position 101' normal engine operation after removal of the cylinder from said opening whereby to disengage said sleeve valve from said sleeve drive crank, said sleeve having a ball socket and ball operatively engaged by said sleeve drive pin, said socket having a V-shaped notch on the underneath portion thereof serving to provide clearance for said sleeve drive crank on removal of said sleeve valve.

5. In an lntemal combustion engine oi the sleeve valve type including a cylinder, a crankcase, a crankshaft having a crank, a sleeve valve operable in said cylinder and provided with a sleeve crank socket, a piston operable in said sleeve valve, means connecting said piston with the crankshaft crank and including a piston pin and connecting rod, sleeve drive mechanism drivingly connecting same with said crankshaft and including a sleeve drive crank extending parallel to said piston pin, said crankcase having an opening of a diameter greater than that of said sleeve valve but less than the sleeve diameter through said crank socket, said sleeve valve extending through said crankcase, said sleeve valve, piston and connections being constructed and arranged to disengage the sleeve valve from said sleeve drive crank and remove same from said crankcase by laterally shifting said sleeve valve from a position for normal engine operation and rotating same through an angle limited by the throw of the sleeve drive crank, then further rotating the sleeve valve when disengaged from the sleeve drive crank to position said sleeve valve with the axis of the sleeve drive crank socket substantially normal to the piston pin axis, whereby to permit the rocking of the sleeve valve about said piston pin in withdrawing the sleeve valve from the crankcase.

ANDRE J. MEYER. EDWARD A. HUIBERT. 

